Thursday, December 6, 2007

The Consumer Product Safety Modernization Act of 2007 would initiate the first major overhaul of the Consumer Product Safety Commission since its founding in 1973. It seeks to reverse a steady decline in the size and effectiveness of the agency by increasing its annual funding to $100 million, from $63 million, over four years. The House version of the bill, which is considered likely to pass, could be finalized in the Energy and Commerce Committee as early as this week.

As written, the bill would:

¿ Require toys to contain no more than 100 parts per million of lead by weight within four years. But after four years, the measure would allow the CPSC to rule whether reaching that standard is feasible.

¿ Not limit the use of tiny magnets in toys, which, when swallowed, can tear children's insides. Magnets have caused one death and several serious injuries this year, and have prompted more toy recalls than any other hazard besides lead.

¿ Require "independent, third-party" testing of toys within a year after enactment but would allow independent labs to be located inside factories and, in some cases, to be run by the manufacturers themselves.

¿ Raise the maximum fine the CPSC can impose on companies that fail to report product hazards to $10 million, from $1.8 million. The agency has never levied a $1.8 million fine, and total fines have not exceeded $10 million in any year.

¿ Continue to exempt amusement parks -- including the nation's biggest theme parks, such as Walt Disney World -- from federal oversight.

¿ Beef up agency resources to speed the processing of consumer inquiries about product hazards. But the bill does not address the source of the logjam: Manufacturers must approve what the CPSC tells the public about their products and can challenge the agency in court over any disagreement.